Oilers star Leon Draisaitl is built for the Stanley Cup Playoffs

The Edmonton Oilers have had lots of heroes this season but few people can talk about this team without mentioning their two best players in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

McDavid is the best player in the league and has a claim for best player of all time so Draisaitl will always live in his shadows a bit but that doesn’t take away from his greatness either.

Connor McDavid led the NHL in scoring this season with a remarkable 153 points. However, Draisaitl was the league’s second-leading scorer with 128 points. In any previous year before, people would have gone crazy over Draisaitl having those kinds of numbers.

So far in the Stanley Cup playoffs, however, Draisaitl has been the guy. Connor McDavid has looked really good but the points haven’t been there yet. The Kings have done a marvelous job trying to contain him. For how long it lasts, we’ll see.

The Edmonton Oilers are very lucky to have Leon Draisaitl in the playoffs.

In game one against the Los Angeles Kings, Draisaitl had two goals in a losing effort. In game two, he had one goal and two assists which were big in terms of helping the team win. With five points in the first two games, it is clear that “Playoff Leon” is activated.

Why is Leon able to do this stuff once the playoffs roll around? Well, the fact of the matter is that the ice opens up for him a bit more in the playoffs while it gets smaller for McDavid. Every team makes containing him their top priority.

McDavid has to battle Phillip Danault all night while Leon Draisaitl really doesn’t. It may get even worse in Los Angeles when the Kings have the advantage of the last change. If they get past the Kings, who gameplan perfectly for this matchup, you might see it even out a bit more.

No matter what though, Leon Draisaitl deserves his own praise without attaching his name to Connor McDavid.

He, on his own, is one of the best players in the league and he finds a way to get even better when everything is on the line in the playoffs. Playoff Leon is someone that all hockey fans should be paying attention to as he is truly a pleasure to watch.